The primary focus of convergence industries to date has been on the technologies that make it possible to combine different forms of information. However, sociological implications will ultimately drive the industry. This is most clearly illustrated by the explosion of the Internet. The assumption of cable and phone companies in their earlier attempts to build broadband networks was that video-on-demand and interactive shopping would be the killer applications driving customer demand. When this did not materialize, broadband projects were scaled back or shelved. It was the dramatic, and totally unexpected, growth in Internet use that created the demand for more bandwidth to the residential marketplace.

The sociological implications of an interactive broadband communications infrastructure are not yet fully understood but will undoubtedly be profound. This interactive broadband technology will cause the most dramatic shift in behavioral patterns since the introduction of the automobile; it will affect how people shop, socialize, are entertained, conduct business, and handle finances.

Critical to such adoption will be the nature of the interface. Any technological interaction that users regard as dehumanizing will be shunned; it will be imperative, therefore, that high-tech companies pay great attention to high-touch issues. Videoconferencing, for example, can greatly increase the human quotient in communications. Conversely, voice-response systems frustrate callers who would prefer to interact with a fellow human being.

In the global market, convergence will have a dual impact. For developed economies, it will foster a higher degree of cross-cultural exchange as global communications and transactions become highly facile. Developing economies will benefit greatly from the affordability that comes with volume; deploying these technologies once the costs have come down will provide great economic development benefits. The creation of a relatively inexpensive electronic infrastructure can reduce the need for more expensive physical infrastructure. It can also aid in better allocation of resources and in reducing waste.